47. washing & sterilizing equipment
Milk is the perfect breeding ground for bacteria, which could make your baby very ill, so you need to sterilize all bottles, teats, and caps by one of the methods shown here. But before sterilizing, all items must be washed out thoroughly using a bottle brush with warm water, liquid detergent, and then rinsed well. If you rub the inside of a teat with salt, the scraping action will remove any trapped milk traces from the teat. Then allow all rinsed items to drain on kitchen paper, not the draining board. Don’t warm the feed until you need it, or try to keep milk warm in a thermos. After a feed, discard any milk left in the bottle.

48. managing a bottle-feeding routine
Bottle feed your baby when he seems hungry, not by the clock. Newborn babies often need as many as seven to eight feeds a day, taking about 50 ml (2 fl oz) at each feed. So put at least this amount of feed into each of the six bottles to begin with. By six months you will be making up feeds of 200ml (7 fl oz). as a rough guide, your baby will require about 150 ml of milk per kilogram of body weight (or 2,5 fl oz per 1 lb) every 24 hours. Before you begin, check the flow from the teat (three should be several drops per second), and the heat of the milk (which ideally should be at room remperature). Try a few drops on your wrist first to make sure it is not too hot. After six months on infant formula, your baby  may need supplement of iron of vitamin D, or may need to be put on follow-on milk which has extra protein and vitamins. If in doubt, check with your surgery.

49. making up a powder formula
Infant powder formula usually comes as a powder in tins, which you mix up as needed. You will need to have a supply of made up bottles in the fridge ready to give as soon as they are needed. Make up the correct levels following the instructions on the tinexactly. You can do one bottle, or a batch of bottles, at a time, whichever is more convenient for you. With the measuring scoop from the formula pack, add loosely filled scoops to each measure of water as directed. Always start with fresh cold water from the mains, boiled, and cooled once. Never use mineral water. You can mix the formula directly into the bottle(s), or via a jug. Once poured, seal the bottle with the disk and ring, but not the teat, and shake well to mix.

Continue to Bottle Feeding 2

51. getting the bottle ready
For each feed, take the bottle from the fridge and turn the teat the right way up. Warm the bottle in warm water, or at least bring it up to room temperature. Never warm the bottle in a microwave oven because the milk may become dangerously hot.

52. giving bottle feed
The beauty of bottle feeding is that it allows mother some time off from the relentless feeding duties, and gives father and baby an ideal time to cuddle and bond together. Whoever is giving the bottle feed – parent, childminder, or grandparent – needs to hold her close and talk and smile at her. Put a bib on her. Lie her half-sitting, cradled in the crook of one arm, your hand supporting her buttocks and legs. Stoke her near cheek which should start the sucking reflex. Give her the teat.

53. when baby wont let go
When your baby has finished drinking the milk, pull the bottle firmly away. If she still wants to suck, offer her your clean little finger. However, if she doesn’t want to let go of the bottle, slide your little finger between her gums and alongside the teat. This will break the suction of the teat.

54. sleeping during a feed
If your baby dozes off during a feed, she may have wind which is making her feel full. Sit her more upright and burp her for a couple of minutes. Then offer her more milk. Remember to tilt the bottle at an angle so that the teat is full of milk, not air. She’ll decide when she’s had enough.

55.switching from breast to bottle
Even if you want to bottle feed, breast-feeding for at least two days will give your baby valuable antibodies to help fight infection. You can then switch from breast to bottle if you decide not to carry on. But if you start by bottle-feeding, you cannot then switch to breast feeds. If you do change over, give baby time to adjust. Replace a lunchtime, breast-feed with a bottle every third day. Moisten the teat with a few drops of breast milk to help. After three days later a third, then the night feed.

56. burping your baby
Allow your baby the chance to burp up any swallowed air, or “wind”. That wind may make her feel full. If she doesn’t burp after 30 seconds, don’t worry its still good for both of you to pause, relax, and slow down at a feed.